The Lorax: Can You?
by Michelle-And-The-Beatle
Summary: The Once-ler gets into a fight with The Lorax about the Truffula trees. They yell at each other and go their separate ways for a while until they make up. And that make up is pretty darn cute! Please Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

Once-ler angrily stomped inside his camp in the middle of the forest. He screamed when the Guardian of the Forest appeared out of nowhere.

"I said not to cut down any more trees, Beanpole! And look what you did! We had a deal," the Lorax complained.

"Why can't I do what _I _want? Or what is good for _me_? If I want to cut down some trees, I'll do it!" Once-ler growled at Lorax and poked his chest roughly. The Lorax fell off of the crate he was standing on. He looked angry at first, but then his anger quickly turned to sadness. His mustache sagged and his eyes lowered. He was upset.

"Do whatever you want," Lorax walked out of the house after saying that. Once-ler was still berthing heavily, angered by The Lorax. Then the guilt came over him. He dropped the ax he was carrying after chopping down another Truffula tree.

"Maybe I will," the lanky man whispered to himself. He didn't mean it. He just wanted to have the last word, and to lose that feeling he had. Once-ler pulled off his gloves and adjusted his fedora hat before leaving the house he lived in. Pipsqueak and some Humming Fish watched the tall human sulk out of his dwelling place and go down a hill, out of sight.

Once-ler walked to the new tree stump he created. He saw the Truffula tree on the ground, limp, lifeless. Because of him. In the distance, the Once-ler saw the first tree he cut down unknowingly. He saw the stones placed around the stump.

Once-ler knew that it wouldn't make up for what he did, but he went searching for black stones of his own.

He came back to the tree stump with a pile of stones of all sizes. The man carefully and reverently placed that stones all around the stump until they were encircling it. Once-ler removed his fedora in respect.

"I'm sorry. I have nothing to give. But if I hadn't cut you down, you might still have time to live," Once-ler spoke to the dead Truffula tree. He put his hat back on and walked to the nearby river.

Little did he know, the Lorax was watching him from behind bushes. Lorax felt better about this. He knew that the Once-ler still cared. He just wanted to help his upcoming business of selling Thneeds.

Once-ler was nearing the river. He leaned himself over the bank to see his reflection. But what he saw made him jump back from the water. It wasn't him. Well, maybe it was. He was dressed in a tall top hat and had all green clothing on. And he had a menacing smile on his face. Once-ler carefully looked back to see how he currently looked in the rippling water.

The tall man shook his head, thinking he imagined that. Then he removed his shoes and socks and rolled up his pants. He stuck his feet in the water and sat on the river bank. The cool water made him sigh contently.

Three Humming Fish swam closer to the Once-ler. They greeted him by humming. Once-ler gave them a weak smile. The fish swam around his feet, and one of their fins brushed against the bottom of his foot. That made Once-ler snort and pull his foot out of the water.

"Easy, guys. I'm pretty ticklish," the skinny human placed his foot back in the water, now having a small smile on his face. The Humming Fish seemed pleased with that reaction. The Once-ler slowly moved his feet around in the water and began softly humming. The fish popped their heads out of the water and helped him hum.

Once-ler giggled and continued humming. This was what he needed. Some time alone with nature.

"Can I tell you something, guys?" the Once-ler asked the fish, imagining that they could understand him. He didn't wait for a reply, and kept going.

"I... I'm confused. And lost. I'm starting to doubt my Thneed. And I don't want to harm any more trees, but I still want to be successful. What should I do?"

"Believe in yourself and in the forest."

The Once-ler looked confused. Did the fish actually just answer him? Something cast a small shadow next to him. Once-ler looked to his left to see the Lorax sit next to him.

"Here to warn me about the 'Forces of Nature' again?" the man swung his feet in the water some more. He really wasn't in the mood to hear anymore warnings from the tiny orange guardian.

"Well, it depends. Are you gonna kill any more trees?" Lorax looked at Once-ler. The skinny man stood up and began walking away.

"Hey, I was talking!" the Lorax stood up and chased after the Once-ler.

"And I was leaving."

"Come back! You forgot your shoes!" Lorax looked behind him to see the Once-ler's shoes and socks by the river.

"I'll get them later, Mustache," the man mumbled.

The Lorax stopped in his tracks and looked sad again. To his surprise, the Lorax saw the human not walk towards his home. He walked down a path not broken up by Truffula trees.

"That was a nice thing you did," Lorax said loudly so the Once-ler could hear him. The tall man stopped walking and turned around.

"What was?"

The orange guardian approached the Once-ler.

"What you did for the tree."

"Cutting it down?" Once-ler raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"No, that was horrible! But what you did after was nice," Lorax smiled through his mustache. Once-ler blushed.

"Oh, that- that was nothing. I just- I didn't want..." Once-ler was at a loss for words. The Lorax chuckled.

"O-Our deal was that I wouldn't cut down anymore trees... And you would keep an eye on me. Right?" the thin man finally found what to say. The Lorax was puzzled by this statement.

"Yeah. And?"

"I promise to keep my part of the deal. Just... can you not keep yours?" Once-ler looked saddened by what he said and his eyes started to burn. He turned away from the Lorax and walked down another hill, away from the guardian.

~Not Yet The End~


	2. Chapter 2

And so, The Lorax listened to the human. He didn't keep as close an eye on him as he should have. The Lorax still watched him, but the difference was that he never talked to him.

The Once-ler didn't sing anymore. He never picked up his guitar either. He was different. And sullen. Strangely enough, the young man wasn't even cutting down trees. He completely stopped his Thneed making. The only reason he didn't leave the forest was because his family wasn't there for him anymore. The Once-ler knew that they didn't care about him. They thought he was a failure.

This was finally getting annoying to The Lorax. He approached the man, who never spent time in his house anymore. Only for sleep. Once-ler was leaning up against a Truffula tree, holding a pad and scribbling away on it. His tongue was slightly sticking out of his mouth.

"Hey, kid," the Lorax spoke, walking towards the Once-ler. The young, skinny man looked up at the source of the voice. He brought his pad up to his chest, hiding it from view of The Lorax.

"Hi," Once-ler said.

"Watcha got there?" the Lorax pointed to the pad held protectively in Once-ler's hands.

"I-It's, uh... paper."

"I can see that, Beanpole. But wat're you doing?" The Lorax got closer to the man to try and get a look at what was on the pad.

"It's nothing. Really. I was just doodling."

"Alright. Can I see?" Lorax smiled slightly and leaned on the Truffula tree shared by Once-ler.

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because you didn't keep your promise."

"What promise? You told me not to watch you, and I listened."

"The other one. Before that."

"So, you _want _me to keep an eye on you?"

The Lorax was very confused.

"I never thought that you would not follow through with your original deal. You said you would keep an eye on me. And just because I said something, you abandoned that previous promise."

"So... You want me to watch you again?"

The Once-ler chuckled.

"I missed you annoying me, Meatloaf," Once-ler scratched the Lorax's fluffy stomach. The guardian jumped back and chuckled. The Lorax returned that gesture on the human, but didn't expect him to laugh and cover up his thin belly.

"D-Don't do that," Once-ler giggled. A sly grin came over the Lorax's face.

"But you did that to me, so I thought I'd give it back to you," Lorax got closer to the Once-ler. The young man scooted himself away from him, still hiding the pad from Lorax.

"But I'm ticklish," Once-ler whined and stuck a hand out in front of himself protectively. While he said that, he smiled.

"That's why I'm doing it, Beanpole," Lorax smiled. He reached out his furry hand and wiggled his fingers on Once-ler's side. The tall man laughed, snorted and flinched.

"Can you stahap?"

"Umm, let me think... No!" and with that, the Lorax pounced on top of the Once-ler. He attacked any part of the human that he could reach. The Once-ler was brought to giggles immediately. He was afraid to throw the small creature off of him and risk hurting him.

"Get off! Hahahaha! M-Meahahahatloaf, stahp it! Nohohahaha!" Once-ler laughed.

This was night and day compared to how the young man was acting lately.

"Can I see what's in that pad of yours?" the Guardian of the Forest asked, just teasing the Once-ler.

"Yes, yes, yehehes! Just stop! Hahahaha, please!" Once-ler choked out. That entire time, he was holding the pad in his hands, which is why the Lorax asked about it. The Lorax stopped his playful assault and rolled off the human.

The Once-ler was regaining his breath. Once he was breathing properly again, he smiled at the Lorax.

"You ready to see the worst drawings ever?" Once-ler asked.

"So you _were _doodling. And yeah, I'm ready."

The tall man opened the cover of his pad and flipped to the page he was drawing on. He handed the pad to the Lorax. The guardian looked at the picture with wide eyes. It was the landscape of what was in front of them drawn in such detail that it looked real, but in black and white.

"You like it?"

"This is amazing, Beanpole. I didn't know you could draw!"

The Once-ler felt happy, getting that kind of praise from his acquaintance.

"Thanks."

"Forget the Thneed! You could be an artist!" the Lorax flipped through the pad, looking for more drawings. He only found a bunch of hand-written notes in it. The furry guardian was skimming through the notes, hoping the Once-ler wouldn't notice. He caught sight of his name before the pad was snatched away from him.

"Hey, I was reading that!"

"I never said you could read it."

"What, it's just n-" the Lorax smirked, "Is that your diary, Beanpole?"

"No!" Once-ler yelled defensively. Then he mumbled, "It's a journal."

The Lorax bust out into laughter. This only made the young man blush.

"Ah, ahhaha. Sorry, Beanpole. But that was too funny! Hey, can you draw me?" the Lorax asked eagerly.

"Uh, sure. But it might take a while."

"I can wait."

"I'm better with copying stuff. Would you mind standing over there for a reference?" Once-ler pointed in front of him with his pencil.

"Like a model?" Lorax didn't seem to excited about that.

"Yeah. Kinda. It's the only way I can get a good picture."

"Fine."

The Lorax walked to the spot the Once-ler pointed to. But instead of just standing there, he had to do a heroic pose with his hands at his sides. That made Once-ler laugh loudly.

"Hey!" the guardian scolded the young man.

"N-No, that's great, Meatloaf. You look greahat," Once-ler adjusted his fedora hat and flipped to a clean page in his pad. Lorax Folded his arms across his chest and frowned.

"Ooh, that's great! Stay like that!" Once-ler saw inspiration in that unintentional pose and began sketching away on his pad.

"Are you kidding me?" the Lorax shook his head slightly.

"Stop moving!"

The Lorax listened and froze himself in that position.

"Can I at least speak?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah yeah. Go ahead. Just don't move that much."

"Okay, then... How come you were sad lately, Beanpole?"

The Once-ler stopped drawing on his pad when he was asked that question. He wasn't sure if he should answer with the truth, or a complete lie. He figured the truth would be better.

"It's just everything going on..."

"What's going on?"

"My Thneed is starting to feel like a complete waste of time. And I'm having too much time alone. And in a weird way, I miss my family. And what you said to me hurt my feelings," the Once-ler wasn't supposed to tell the guardian the last part.

"Wait, what did I say?"

"You basically brought down my dreams, too," Once-ler squeezed his eyes shut and hugged his knees closer to himself.

"Oh, Beanpole. I didn't mean- I mean, that's not what I meant. I just didn't want you hurting the trees."

"You called my Thneed a piece of garbage repeatedly."

"Yeeeah, well that was just to get you to leave."

"So, you _still_ don't want me here?" Once-ler unfurled himself and had an angry tone to his voice.

"N-No! That was then! When you wanted to cut down the trees. I think... I think all of the creatures are warming up to you. I just don't want you to hurt them," the Lorax finally unfolded his arms. He looked at the Once-ler with sadness in his eyes.

"Heh," the Once-ler surprisingly grinned, "I would never hurt them, Mustache. Or you. You're my friends now. All of you."

The Lorax gave the young man a warm smile.

"You hear that, guys?" Lorax spoke loudly now. The Once-ler looked confused. Then, all at once, the tall man was tackled on his back by a bunch of Bar-ba-lots, including Pipsqueak, some Swomee Swans, and Humming Fish.

They all seemed to be hugging him. And Once-ler let out a laugh. The Lorax smiled at the scene.

"I-I love you guys, too," Once-ler smiled at all of them, and he stuttered because he was having a hard time breathing.

"Meatloaf, can you get them off?" Once-ler asked the guardian.

"Nah, I'll let them stay there for as long as they need to."

"Really? Ugh, fine... Alright, guys! Time to get off!" the Once-ler tried picking up a Bar-ba-loot gently, but it held on to his vest like his life depended on it. Then he felt another one start digging in his pocket, probably looking for a marshmallow. Unfortunately for the Once-ler, that pocket was near his ribs. The young man began to laugh unwillingly from the Bar-ba-loot's prodding.

"St-Stahp it! I don't have anihihihy marshmallows!"

The Lorax chuckled. He walked over to the Once-ler under all the animals and pulled the culprit from the tall man's body. Once-ler let out a releived sigh.

"T-Thanks, Mustache."

"Don't mention it. Everyone, get offa him! You're gonna squash him," the Lorax called the animals off. They all listened and stepped back from the Once-ler. The human sat up and brushed himself off. Then he reached in his pocket and pulled out a marshmallow. He handed it to the Bar-ba-loot who went searching for it. The animal gasped in delight and popped it in his mouth.

The sun was starting to set on the forest. All of the animals went to their original habitats to sleep for the upcoming night. The Once-ler yawned.

"You want me to finish the picture before the sun goes down?" the human asked the Lorax with a smirk. The guardian chuckled.

"Sure, Beanpole."

The Once-ler smiled and leaned against the Truffula tree again. He reopened his pad and continued sketching the Lorax.

After a couple of minutes, the Once-ler was finishing up his drawing. He suddenly heard a noise that wasn't and shouldn't be a part of nature and creation. He jumped a foot in the air, dropping his pencils and pad in the process.

The sound was actually the Lorax's snoring. The tiny guardian had curled up into a ball and fell asleep where he was supposed to be posing. The Once-ler giggled.

He first picked up his pad and pencil, then bent down and gently picked up The Lorax. He carried him to his home, and gasped when he opened the door. All of nature's creatures in the forest were again sleeping in his home. Thankfully, they left the bed empty.

The young man placed the snoring Lorax on his bed. Then he quietly took off his fedora hat and changed into his pajamas. He yawned before getting under the covers of his bed.

Just as he was falling asleep, the Lorax let out a really loud snore. It made the Once-ler jump. He looked at his ceiling, which had a Bar-ba-loot hanging on his lamp. Then he thought about stuff.

_If trees keep dying,_

_What's the use in trying_

_To make my Thneeds_

_Which everyone is supposed to need. _

_Then I wonder,_

_Can I start anew? _

_And if I can't do it..._

_Can you?_

~The End~


End file.
